Michigan QAnon follower shoots wife, daughter

Mendel

Mendel

Senior Member.
Article:
A Michigan man's obsession with the pro-Trump QAnon conspiracy theory culminated in a Sunday incident in which he murdered his wife and badly injured one of his children, his daughter told The Daily Beast.

Rebecca Lanis told The Daily Beast that her father became obsessed with QAnon and other conspiracy theories in 2020, consuming huge amounts of online videos and following far-right figures like InfoWars' Alex Jones.

According to his daughter, Igor Lanis was a car designer with no history of violence. She described her parents as once "extremely loving," but her father changed after Donald Trump lost 2020.

"He had a sense of reality," Rebecca Lanis said. "But then after 2020, when Trump lost, he started going down these crazy rabbit holes."

That year, Lanis became fascinated by QAnon and the idea that Joe Biden stole the election.

"It's a very big contributor to what happened," Rebecca Lanis said of her father's QAnon beliefs.

Igor Lanis' mental health worsened as he became drawn into the conspiracy theories, according to Rebecca Lanis. He insisted that family members watch conspiracy-theory videos about the 5G cell towers, vaccines, and the election. He started to believe that some world leaders were in fact alien lizard-people in disguise, a fringe conspiracy theory even among QAnon supporters. Rebecca Lanis said family members tried to pull her father out of his beliefs, but arguing with him was "pointless."

The Walled Lake shootings are just the latest killing tied to QAnon. A California man who allegedly murdered his 10-month-old daughter and 2-year-old son in Mexico told police that his crimes were motivated by QAnon, according to prosecutors. In 2019, a QAnon believer allegedly killed the purported head of the Gambino mafia family in a misguided attempt to bring him to a QAnon tribunal. That suspect was deemed mentally unfit to stand trial. Earlier that year, a Seattle QAnon believer convinced his brother was a lizard person murdered him with a samurai sword.
 
Back in late 90s, WLW in Cincinnati had a third rate, Alex Jones wannabe who did a three hour show on Sunday nights. In the months leading up to Y2K, his guests were almost exclusively conspiracy theorists with dire predictions of what was to come. One particular guest talked about how the UN had foreign troops ready to take control of the US, then related a litany of atrocities he claimed UN forces had committed around the world. Late in the show, a very shaken caller from rural Kentucky thanked the host and guest for informing him and his wife of what was to come. As a result, he explained they had decided to kill their two little girls, then take their own lives on New Year's Eve rather than face the future the guest foretold.
 
So what happens when all these predictions don't pan out? Is it proof that their vigilance has paid off, do they not care and just wait for the next doom monger to come along, does the unfulfillment make them more angry/closed off?
I was at a soccer event over the weekend and saw someone with a QAnon t-shirt (I've seen a few in the wild), the first drop was in 2016, must be a slow moving storm. How long will they wait it out?
 
The writer seems to imply a link but gives no real evidence for it other than the non present daughter's opinion. Sure the Father/husband was into conspiracy theories, but there is no indication those were the cause of the shooting. Maybe wife filed for divorce. There is a statement that the Father/Husband had mental health issues that were exacerbated by the conspiracy theories but could be a correlation is not causation situation. There are many things that could have caused this shooting.
 
I wonder why the mocking, condescension, and enflaming divisiveness didn't cure these guy? strange.
 
dlk1728 said:
The writer seems to imply a link but gives no real evidence for it other than the non present daughter's opinion. Sure the Father/husband was into conspiracy theories, but there is no indication those were the cause of the shooting. Maybe wife filed for divorce. There is a statement that the Father/Husband had mental health issues that were exacerbated by the conspiracy theories but could be a correlation is not causation situation. There are many things that could have caused this shooting.
Click to expand...
The daughter was not present at the shooting, but she witnessed her father's mental health decline.
External Quote:
"He had a sense of reality," Rebecca Lanis said. "But then after 2020, when Trump lost, he started going down these crazy rabbit holes."
The pandemic may have been a contributary cause, it has affected many people's mental health adversely.
 
Mendel said:
this anecdote has all the trappings of an urban legend. I don't suppose you can source it?
Click to expand...
I don't know if that anecdote is true, but Doomsday cult leaders have been escorting believers to suicidal deaths for a long time. Remember the Jonestown massacre in Guyana? Remember the Branch Davidians? Remember Masada?
 
Article:
"He became a different person after 2020 when Trump lost," she said.

She says her father started getting more agitated at normal things and often found a way to bring up conspiracy theories about vaccines, 5G and electromagnetic fields. He turned to extremism – like QAnon, a political conspiracy theory centered around baseless claims that Trump was fighting enemies within a so-called "deep state" and a sex-trafficking ring run by Satanic cannibals.

Rebecca Lanis says her family's tragedy is a warning for people to pay attention to their loved ones who may need help.

"I think that people need to focus more on radicalization, QAnon. If they have relatives with guns who are like this, you need to get them help, and they need to get checked into a mental institution, even if you think they're not dangerous," she said.


Article:
His 21-year-old daughter Rebecca Lanis said her father was being radicalized by conspiracy theories online and was dealing with mental health issues. She said he tried to check himself into a mental health facility on Sept. 8, three days before the attack but was sent home.

She claims that while Igor was never violent, his beliefs led to the violent attack. She is warning people to get help for family members who get tied into QAnon conspiracy theories, especially if they have access to guns.


QAnon is an ideology that mongers hate.
 
Mendel said:
The daughter was not present at the shooting, but she witnessed her father's mental health decline.
External Quote:
"He had a sense of reality," Rebecca Lanis said. "But then after 2020, when Trump lost, he started going down these crazy rabbit holes."
The pandemic may have been a contributary cause, it has affected many people's mental health adversely.
Click to expand...
I don't doubt that he had a mental health decline, possibly related to the pandemic as you stated. However, we can't say for sure that following Qanon or other conspiracy theories exacerbated it. He may have been more susceptible to them because of his mental illness. They could have made his mental illness worse or possibly had no impact. At this point there is not even any evidence that his mental health played a role in the shootings other than the one daughter's statements that also don't raise a connection other than speculation.
 
Mendel said:
Article:
"He became a different person after 2020 when Trump lost," she said.

She says her father started getting more agitated at normal things and often found a way to bring up conspiracy theories about vaccines, 5G and electromagnetic fields. He turned to extremism – like QAnon, a political conspiracy theory centered around baseless claims that Trump was fighting enemies within a so-called "deep state" and a sex-trafficking ring run by Satanic cannibals.

Rebecca Lanis says her family's tragedy is a warning for people to pay attention to their loved ones who may need help.

"I think that people need to focus more on radicalization, QAnon. If they have relatives with guns who are like this, you need to get them help, and they need to get checked into a mental institution, even if you think they're not dangerous," she said.


Article:
His 21-year-old daughter Rebecca Lanis said her father was being radicalized by conspiracy theories online and was dealing with mental health issues. She said he tried to check himself into a mental health facility on Sept. 8, three days before the attack but was sent home.

She claims that while Igor was never violent, his beliefs led to the violent attack. She is warning people to get help for family members who get tied into QAnon conspiracy theories, especially if they have access to guns.


QAnon is an ideology that mongers hate.
Click to expand...
Two things that stand out. First the sad state of affairs when someone seeks help and is denied only to turn around and be involved in such a horrific crime. Unfortunately this is a common occurrence with mental health issues in the United States.

The second thing that stands out is the daughter's call for anyone who has shared a Qanon conspiracy theory should be put in an institution. That is extreme in my opinion, however, given her recent tragedy I can understand why she would say this.
 
dlk1728 said:
The second thing that stands out is the daughter's call for anyone who has shared a Qanon conspiracy theory should be put in an institution.
Click to expand...
You're overreaching. She said "get help", that doesn't equate institutionalisation.

("The writer seems to imply a link" is another take of yours not borne out by evidence.)
 
None of these articles explain how his Qanon beliefs actually led to the shooting. I feel like if he shot his wife over an argument about Qanon stuff, the articles would definitely mention that.
 
Mendel said:
You're overreaching. She said "get help", that doesn't equate institutionalisation.

("The writer seems to imply a link" is another take of yours not borne out by evidence.)
Click to expand...
"I think that people need to focus more on radicalization, QAnon. If they have relatives with guns who are like this, you need to get them help, and they need to get checked into a mental institution, even if you think they're not dangerous," she said.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Mendel said:
ah, i was looking at the other quote

note that this one has the qualifier "relatives with guns who are like this", not, as you wrote, "anyone who has shared a Qanon conspiracy theory".
Click to expand...
I did gloss over the guns part, but my point still stands, a bit extreme to say any who have shared a Qanon conspiracy theory (I'm not even sure how to define Qanon conspiracy theories vs other right wing or anti-government conspiracy theories) and has guns should be checked into an institution. And again I still understand her saying this in light of her recent tragedy.
 
The whole "Qanon" thing is pretty poorly defined yeah. I have no idea how many people who believe the 2020 election was stolen also believe there is some deep state insider called "Q" leaking info on chan boards. Same goes for 5G and vaccines. I feel like media articles just call all those things "Qanon" just because.
 
@Henkka
Both of these are references from last year; that's when the "election was stolen" talking point became prevalent.
External Quote:

Study finds nearly one-in-five Americans believe QAnon conspiracy theories

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/me...ns-believe-qanon-conspiracy-theories-n1268722

External Quote:

For days after the election, adherents to the QAnon conspiracy movement had been trying to get President Donald Trump's attention with constant false claims about voter fraud connected to a company that makes voting machines.

On Thursday, they celebrated. Trump tweeted in all-caps about a conspiracy theory that baselessly alleges that Dominion Voting Systems, a company that makes voting machines, "deleted" millions of Trump votes, citing a report on the far-right cable news outlet One America News Network.
https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-n...oter-fraud-conspiracy-theory-reaches-n1247780
 
Ann K said:
@Henkka
Both of these are references from last year; that's when the "election was stolen" talking point became prevalent.
External Quote:

Study finds nearly one-in-five Americans believe QAnon conspiracy theories

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/me...ns-believe-qanon-conspiracy-theories-n1268722

External Quote:

For days after the election, adherents to the QAnon conspiracy movement had been trying to get President Donald Trump's attention with constant false claims about voter fraud connected to a company that makes voting machines.

On Thursday, they celebrated. Trump tweeted in all-caps about a conspiracy theory that baselessly alleges that Dominion Voting Systems, a company that makes voting machines, "deleted" millions of Trump votes, citing a report on the far-right cable news outlet One America News Network.
https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-n...oter-fraud-conspiracy-theory-reaches-n1247780
Click to expand...
But I think the bigger point is referenced above by RTM is that Qanon was a thing in 2016 and "The Storm" was supposed to come. It is now 6 years later and no Storm ever came. Why are new conspiracy theories linked to Qanon? How do you determine which new conspiracy theories are Qanon and which aren't?

This may warrant its own thread as it is getting away from the original article.
 
Q seems to be a catch all conspiracy. I started reading about it in it's early days and found it fascinating in that how can people still keep believing in failed predictions.
In essence it boiled down to: randomer made claims on the internet and people believed him and everyone I don't like is a pedophile.
It had somewhat clearly defined good and evil. Trump being the savior and the deep state/elite/NWO/Spectre type organization responsible for whatever grieves you.
Their enemies were going to be rounded up and executed.
There also seemed to be a degree of people being part of the good side/hero of their own story, their enemies get what's coming to them with a bit of end time/rapturism.

Given it cast a wide net of who the elites are, it seems to attract people who may not subscribe to the whole "manifesto" but I think it does play into the tribalistic idea of the others getting their comeuppance.

Mick done an interview with Mike Rotschild a couple years ago, he followed it from the early stages, it's available on his podcast.
 
Last edited:
Q followers have also become a ripe target for scams and grift so a lot of less trendy conspiracy pushers have tried to glom onto it with their own brands, meeting varying levels of penetration. Everything from Jewish space lasers to cryptocurrency. I think at this point Q is less a theory and more a broad and non-unified community of believers.
 
I guess what I'm saying is just that there's probably lots of people who hold beliefs the media would call "Qanon" even though they don't even know what 8chan is and have never read a post by "Q". Lots of MAGA boomers are probably like this.
 
Henkka said:
I guess what I'm saying is just that there's probably lots of people who hold beliefs the media would call "Qanon" even though they don't even know what 8chan is and have never read a post by "Q". Lots of MAGA boomers are probably like this.
Click to expand...

I suppose so, it's like outside the conspiracy theory pyramid. Some people subscribe to the bottom part and can go as deep into the rabbit hole as they want.
 
Henkka said:
I guess what I'm saying is just that there's probably lots of people who hold beliefs the media would call "Qanon" even though they don't even know what 8chan is and have never read a post by "Q". Lots of MAGA boomers are probably like this.
Click to expand...
If I wanted to draw a line, I'd say everyone who knows what WWG1WGA means and includes themselves in it is part of the QAnon movement.
Article:
Trump shared a picture of himself wearing a Q lapel pin, overlaid with the QAnon phrases "The Storm is Coming" and "WWG1WGA," on his Truth Social account on Monday evening. The post was originally shared on Truth Social by an account called "Patriots in Control," before Trump re-shared it.
1663066225864-screenshot-2022-09-13-at-100934-webp.54731
@RTM
 

Attachments

Mendel said:
this anecdote has all the trappings of an urban legend. I don't suppose you can source it?
Click to expand...
I can't find a direct reference to that call, but this is a link to a story about WLW dropping Boshears and other on-air personalities in 2007. I include it only because of the comments (mostly anonymous) made relative to Boshears and his guests. To some he was a brave truth teller, others made disparaging comments about him and the conspiracy theories (Y2K, chemtrails, 9/11, fake moon landing, etc.) he espoused. There are always going to be those who believe stuff like this, and others who recognize them for what they are.

http://cincytv.blogspot.com/2007/01/boshears-bubba-bo-banished-from-big.asp?m=1

To the best of my knowledge, and I searched the news for several weeks before and after 1 Jan 2000, there was no murder/suicide case involving a family in Kentucky.
 
Mendel said:
...I'd say everyone who knows what WWG1WGA means and includes themselves in it is part of the QAnon movement.[/article] @RTM
Click to expand...
Well, I know what "WWG1WGA" stands for, but for the life of me
I've never been able to figure out why anyone thinks it's meaningful.
 
RTM said:
Taken from the Jeff Bridges film, White Squall. Maybe squall equals storm?
Click to expand...
never knew that
Article:
Screenwriter Todd Robinson wrote this catchy line for the 1996 movie "White Squall," a male-bonding tale directed by Ridley Scott about teenage boys and their hard-nosed captain (played by Jeff Bridges) who learn about life and loyalty sailing a 1911 brigantine through a deadly storm.


i always thought it was just a tweaking of "One for all, all for one". The Three Muskateers.
 
Ann K said:
Remember Masada?
Click to expand...
Maybe not Masada. There is a lot of evidence that it is a myth, something I was surprised to here, though that's for another thread ;) :

External Quote:
According to Josephus, the siege of Masada by Roman troops from 73 to 74 CE, at the end of the First Jewish–Roman War, ended in the mass suicide of the 960 Sicarii rebels who were hiding there. However, the archaeological evidence relevant to a mass suicide event is ambiguous at best[2][3] and rejected entirely by some scholars. [2][4]

There are discrepancies between archaeological findings and Josephus' writings. Josephus mentions only one of the two palaces that have been excavated, refers only to one fire, though many buildings show fire damage, and claims that 960 people were killed, though the remains of at most 28 bodies have been found.[21][22]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masada
 
WWG1WGA, I forget exactly what that stands for, where we go 1 we go all or something like this IIRC
but I was looking perhaps its www.giga so type this into the address bar to get the cryptic message 'something extraordinary is coming soon'

me = confirmation that "the storm" is coming
but reality = some lame-ass product or service that noone wanted o_O

giga.jpg


But then I pondered further, if it really is a product/service you would think they would check the spelling, esp when theres only a few words
Though this level of incompetence is on brand for a Qanon follower, so who knows ....

In short I dont know what to think
 
Mendel said:
ah, i was looking at the other quote

note that this one has the qualifier "relatives with guns who are like this", not, as you wrote, "anyone who has shared a Qanon conspiracy theory".
Click to expand...

I was about to respond with *exactly* this - whoever modded you down, please mod this down too, as you're in equal disagreement with me.

And this is why paraphrasiing is against the posting guidelines. Heck, that's not even paraphrasing, it's changing the meaning of the quote completely,
 
FatPhil said:
whoever modded you down
Click to expand...
click on the reaction icon to see who left it
SmartSelect_20220915-091026_Samsung Internet.jpg

(I should also mention that before a mod edited it, post #16 was two quotes with no other text, and "reply"-ing to it didn't even provide me with quote tags. That's why my post #18 is a "bare" reply.)
 
Last edited:
NoParty said:
Well, I know what "WWG1WGA" stands for, but for the life of me
I've never been able to figure out why anyone thinks it's meaningful.
Click to expand...

How could it not be meaningful, it's obvously a rallying cry.

External Quote:
rallying cry
Word forms: plural rallying cries
countable noun
A rallying cry or rallying call is something such as a word or phrase, an event, or a belief which encourages people to unite and to act in support of a particular group or idea.
...the more political songs such as Meat Is Murder's rallying cry for vegetarianism.
-- https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/rallying-cry

Whether it's sensible, or worrying, or laughable is another question, one that depends on the attributes of the bulk of those who consider themselves "we" - their rationality, armedness, and mental health, for example.
 
Mendel said:
click on the reaction icon to see who left it
Click to expand...

Thanks - that's a feature I didn't know about. It even works without JavaScript, which is how I roll 99% of the time. (Which means I have a palaver that slows me down whenever I want to downmod, which is perhaps a good thing.)
 
NoParty said:
Well, I know what "WWG1WGA" stands for, but for the life of me
I've never been able to figure out why anyone thinks it's meaningful.
Click to expand...
I figured it out a while ago:
Mendel said:
Talking about sheeple, this has been a source of deep amusement for me:
Article:
Sheep have a strong instinct to follow the sheep in front of them. When one sheep decides to go somewhere, the rest of the flock usually follows, even if it is not a good "decision." For example, sheep will follow each other to slaughter. If one sheep jumps over a cliff, the others are likely to follow.

View attachment 46668
It's like, if a flock of sheep had to choose a slogan, it'd be that.
Click to expand...
It's the "all for one" part of the 3 Musketeers' slogan, without the "one for all".
 
Henkka said:
The whole "Qanon" thing is pretty poorly defined yeah. I have no idea how many people who believe the 2020 election was stolen also believe there is some deep state insider called "Q" leaking info on chan boards. Same goes for 5G and vaccines. I feel like media articles just call all those things "Qanon" just because.
Click to expand...
Yes, it's poorly defined. Some follow Qanon, and others follow them. The line is blurred. When a person who has wide influence (say, an ex-President or the news anchor on a major right-wing TV station) repeats untrue comments that seem to have originated with "Q", it is no longer clear-cut. Conspiracy theories are necessarily things that originate somewhere (frequently unknown) and then spread, perhaps through many generations, as "I heard that...". Not all of them got it straight from the source.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Ann K
German conspiracists on trial.
Replies
20
Views
2K
Landru
Landru
G
My journey out the rabbit hole. Quite a rollercoaster ride.
Replies
9
Views
4K
Mendel
Mendel
NorCal Dave
QAnon and Yoga Making Strange Connections
Replies
26
Views
4K
Mauro
Mauro
S
Redditor says he saw a Gnome, entire comments section believes him
Replies
30
Views
2K
Ann K
Ann K
cybe
George Bush is really George Scherff, Skorzeny faked his death, Hitler lived until 120 etc [DEBUNKED]
Replies
9
Views
669
JohnJones15
J

Latest posts

Back
Top